Fighting for Eden
by AliAnnaCavill
Summary: Fifty miles west of Austin,TX lies the city of Eden, where Steve McGarrett and Ali were when the nuclear bombs were set off in the major cities of the United States. There is no power, there is no government and they cannot return to Hawaii without risking their lives. What will happen to them when the fate of the country is unknown? A/U SteveM/OC Based on Jericho.
1. Chapter 1

**Fighting for Eden**

**I changed some things from Ali's past to fit the plot of the story. I thought it would be better for it to take place in a small town. Love everyone who has been patient and for any usual readers, _Covert Ops_ will be updated soon! I watched the show _Jericho_ and thought, what if Five-0 was thrusted in the same situation?**

**Chapter 1: When Things Fall Apart **

Ali McGarrett awoke beside her husband, Steve, on the morning of her high school reunion in Eden, Texas. The couple was in the home of Ali's cousins', Vikki and Katie Lipinski. She did not want to attend the reunion, but she wanted Steve to meet people she had gone to high school with. Part of her wanted him to know somebody who was not in the Navy or in law enforcement, like the McGarrett's were. The other part just wanted to go back home to Oahu before they saw anybody she used to know.

"You excited to see your old friends?" Steve questioned as he slipped on his sleeveless shirt that had "Navy SEAL" printed across in yellow.

"I'd be happier shooting or arresting some of them," Ali sneered as Steve laughed.

The sad part was that it was true. She wanted to be home in Hawaii, working with Steve and the rest of their Five-0 task force. This made her ask herself, how much did a person have to hate her roots to prefer being at work?

"People ask why Ali Sarna, Steve? I tell them she's just got that charm," he smiled, taking her hand in his and kissing it. This daily, morning ritual made her blush every time; Steve was a man who always had to have a tough façade, but Ali loved that he let it go for her.

"Nobody asks you that," Ali kissed his cheek and strolled out of the bedroom in her black leggings and oversized t-shirt. "I'm going to go see if Vikki's up."

Vikki's home had two-stories and was yellow with a Victorian style. It came with a wraparound porch. The upstairs that Ali was walking through had four bedrooms, two on each side of the hall, a bathroom near the staircase. The floor was made of a dark oak and the walls were painted canary yellow. There was white molding around each doorway, making everything seem more cheerful. There was a string that hung from the ceiling, which would bring down a set of stairs that led to the attic if it was pulled. At the end of the hall there was a window that overlooked a large tree with a tire swing that the three girls used to play on as children.

Katie walked out of the last room and smiled at Ali. The two women both had blonde hair and blue eyes, but Ali's hair was wavy while Katie's was pin straight. Katie was also taller than Ali and a little wider. Katie was younger than her cousin by two years and worked at Eden Elementary School as a third grade teacher.

"Good morning," Ali said.

"Good morning," Katie replied. "Eric's still asleep, he heard Steve get up earlier and felt bad for oversleeping."

Eric was Katie's live-in boyfriend. He was Ali's old classmate and returned to Eden after college, like most people from the town did. He would be attending the reunion which meant Katie would be too.

"Oh no, Steve's afraid that his diet will make him fat if he doesn't wake up at five to run or swim," Ali laughed.

"Eric went on a run with him," Katie explained. "Said he had a hard time catching up to your husband. "

"That's a sign that the US Navy is doing a good job with training the SEALs," Ali remarked. "I would have gone with them, but I had morning sickness."

"You're pregnant?" Katie arched a brow.

"Yeah, a little over two months," Ali smiled, thinking of what her baby would look like. Maybe it would be a little girl with long, dark hair and blue eyes. Ali could put little bows in her hair and help her with makeup in high school. Or maybe it would be a little boy with short dark hair and blue eyes! Steve would teach him how to play football, how to surf and their son would run around mimicking Steve's every move, saying he wanted to be a SEAL when he grew up.

"That's exciting! We can totally throw a baby shower before you leave tomorrow afternoon! Vikki can call up Betty to bring down some things from her store!" Katie enthusiastically said.

Ali hadn't thought of Betty in ages. She was an older woman who owned Eden's grocery store. When the girls were growing up, Betty always gave them a free lollipop.

"Hello," Steve said as he came out from the guest room, squeezing past both women.

"Why isn't Eric like that," Katie said with a sad look on her face.

_Is there something wrong with Eric? _Ali thought when she noticed the look on Katie's face. Her expression told the former spy that she was not as happy in the relationship as Eric seemed to be. She brushed the awkwardness away and headed downstairs. She had to figure out how to keep a cool façade up for the reunion which was that night. Besides, in a town like Eden that had a population of four thousand people, one of their nosey classmates would know and bring it up that night.

_I did not miss this place,_ Ali internally sighed, remembering Eden.

Eden, Texas was one of those small towns where everybody knew each other through somebody else. Fifty miles west of Austin, it was always hot, but drastically different from the Hawaiian warmth. In Hawaii, Ali had the beach, it rained and there was a breeze from the Pacific. Here, in Eden, everything was dry. Ali hated how far apart everything was. The nearest neighbor was about one city block down, if you excluded the empty house across the dirt road. Downtown consisted of about four blocks that had the mayor's office, city hall, the elementary school (the high school had been demolished and the teenagers had to either attend school in the next town or the private school on the outskirts of town), the police station along with the fire department, a grocery store, a bar and exactly one hall that accommodated black tie events. It was a booming metropolis for someone who came from an even smaller town, but to Ali it was a bore. That's why people spent so much time gossiping and knew everything about everyone. She could not wait until she and Steve would leave the next day.

When Ali entered the kitchen she saw her cousin, Vikki, standing with her red hair down wearing sweat pants. Vikki usually was in clothes that made her look put together and her hair was always up. Something was wrong.

"What's up?" Ali asked.

"The new guy across the street, Michael Donovan or whatever, his German shepherd attacked my cat!"

"Jesus," Ali sighed. She felt bad Vikki for losing her cat, but secretly she was happy that the feline had been hurt. It was mean and scratched anybody who tried to be nice to it.

"We finally got a neighbor?" Katie asked.

"Yeah, I don't like him," Vikki remarked. "He's tall, talks funny and thinks he's hilarious."

Ali glanced out the kitchen window, where she could see Mr. Donovan's new home. There was an enormous German shepherd running around on the porch. At least now Vikki and Katie weren't isolated. Maybe Michael Donovan was nice.

"You look beautiful," Steve quietly remarked to Ali when she descended the stairs that evening.

Ali _felt _beautiful in a one shoulder, sapphire gown, but she couldn't stop staring at her husband. He wore his naval dress blues. His dark hair was combed to the side, his blue eyes seemed to twinkle and he appeared so confident.

"Thanks," Ali blushed as Katie approached in a black gown with Eric, who was wearing an expensive looking black suit. "But I'm sure you look better."

"You guys ready?" Eric asked.

It had been the first time Ali had really seen Eric in the house. He was a man of a medium stature with blonde hair and blue eyes. He was buff, he had obvious muscles beneath his suit. He was a good man, trying to help everybody in any way he can, always talking about how he loved Katie. Why would her cousin have a problem?

"Might as well get this over with," Ali jested, leading the way out of the house.

"And Ali," Eric caught her attention before she stepped outside.

"Darcy, Ceci and Kaylee, they haven't changed much since high school," Eric warned her.

"I'm a big girl, I can fight my own battles," Ali assured.

When the group arrived at the one fancy hall in town, Ali was afraid to speak to the people she left behind a decade ago. There was a group of women she recognized as the girls she used to eat lunch with, some of them had dyed their hair different colors. Then there were a few men who were significantly taller than they had been in their senior year.

"Ali Sarna?" she heard an uncharacteristically deep voice that belonged to Cecilia "Ceci" Calloway, Ali's former friend who had done nothing but let Ali down. She had dyed her hair a dark brown color, most likely to mimic Darcy O'Hanna. However, the color made Ceci appear sick and washed out.

"Hello," Ali said, trying very hard not to tell her ex- friend how much of a tyrant, queen bee she truly had been and, from what Eric had told her, still was.

"You have not changed much!" Ceci exclaimed. "I mean you look a little plumper, but I'm sure it's just your eating habits have caught up with you!"

Ali sneered, but refrained from saying anything. She didn't want to ruin a special night for her classmates by arguing with Ceci. She would live with the satisfaction of knowing her eating habits were fine and that Ceci's remark meant the baby was growing. While Ali was beginning her family with Steve, the egotistical woman had a broken marriage with Seth Calloway that was due to his indiscretions. Seth cheated on Ceci with different women in Eden and Ceci… well she must have been going through a rough time trying to raise Aaron, her son, on her own.

"It's always good to see you, Ceci," Ali said. "How's Seth?"

Ceci's face dropped, making the spy realize she just asked the one question that the entire city of Eden avoided asking. She hadn't meant to ask it, but she was thinking about Seth cheating, at the same time she forgot and the question just slipped out. Ceci, however quickly put on her signature fake smile.

"Seth is fine. Who is that?"

Ali saw Ceci was pointing at Steve, who was talking with Eric a few feet behind her.

"That's my husband, Steve," Ali answered as he came over and smiled at Ceci.

"Hi, Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett," Steve extended his hand.

"Ceci Calloway," Ceci answered shaking his hand and giving him a smile.

After taking a few more backhanded compliments from Ceci, Ali dragged Steve to their assigned table where the company seemed friendlier. The McGarrett's sat with Katie and Eric, a short, brunette named Anne along with her burly husband, Harry Davis, and Ali's petite friend, Marisa, who came with her husband whom Ali didn't recognize.

"Ali," Anne called out to her. "You going to give us his name!?"

Ali laughed taking Steve's hand in hers. After a decade, people in Eden acted as if they had seen her yesterday. She didn't know whether to think that they didn't mind her being gone or whether they wanted to enjoy the time they had now. She couldn't demand the latter, she really hadn't missed anybody aside from Vikki and Katie.

"This is Steve. Babe, that's Anne, Harry, Marisa and-"

"Charlie," Marisa introduced her husband. "We came today from Chicago."

"Chicago's always fun!" Ali remarked, happy that she hadn't been the only one that left.

"So Steve? How did she trick you into marrying her?" Harry jested as Ali laughed.

"Oh you know," Steve smiled. "We made a deal that we wouldn't get married and I lost."

Ali jokingly slapped her husband's arm as he held up his hand, "But she doesn't know I lost on purpose."

"Why can't you say sweet things like that," Anne accusingly asked Harry.

"I say sweet things all the time!" Harry defended himself.

" '_Morning wife, the hair looks good'_ is not a sweet thing," Anne complained, making everybody laugh.

The evening was filled with laughter as the table caught up with each other, demanded stories about important events from one another. Ali was glad that she sat at a table where there was another out of state couple. It brought more variety to the conversation. If she were sitting somewhere else, everybody would already know what was going on with everyone else since they all lived in Eden. She learned that Anne and Harry had three children, their oldest would be in Katie's classroom next year. Marisa had gone to school in New York, became a pharmacist and moved to Chicago upon graduation, where she met Charlie. Ali already knew Katie and Eric's life story. However, whenever people asked her any questions about her job, Ali had to tell them she became a nurse because they were not allowed to know she used to be a spy. Now that there was a baby on the way she wanted a career that didn't include any guns… or lying.

"I'd be more worried about the illegal immigrants like Ali taking away jobs than any country invading the U.S," Harry said during the table's conversation about the United States' national security.

"Hey! Enough with the immigrant jokes! I was born here, I'm just Polish!" Ali laughed.

"No, but we know nothing about North Korea," Charlie pointed out.

_Oh but we do and it would shock you, Charlie_, Ali thought.

"What do you mean?" Katie asked. "We know they're brainwashed to think their dictator is their god."

Steve's phone rang out of the blue when Katie finished her statement and he excused himself to take the call. When he returned he glanced at Ali with a concerned look and signaled her to follow him.

"What?" she quietly asked when they were far enough away from everybody.

"Our flight was cancelled for tomorrow, so I rescheduled a flight for you in two days," he informed her.

Ali arched a brow when he said 'a flight for you'.

"Where will you be?" she asked.

"My old SEAL team leader called, he needs me to be in D.C tonight and fly to Kiev tomorrow morning for an operation," Steve explained as Ali felt her heart drop in her chest.

"What? Why?"

"I don't know what exactly is happening, I just know they're sending men overseas to the Ukraine," he told her.

"Steven," Ali grabbed his hand and held on to it tightly.

Whenever the government sent men overseas, it meant something bad was going on. Ali worked alongside Steve for three years on the task force. There were many dangerous moments, but this was the first time he was leaving on an operation as SEAL. She was pregnant and, granted, she was only two months into the pregnancy, but she didn't want Steve to miss anything. What if she spontaneously gave birth?

_That's not going to happen, _she thought, scorning her anxiety and the things it made up.

"It'll be fine," he kissed her forehead. "I'll leave when we're done here."

"It's okay, there's like half an hour left," Ali sighed. "Let's go back to Vikki's and I'll drive you to Austin."

"No, it's okay, I'll take the bus. You don't have to drive there and back," he assured her.

The couple returned to their table, explained their situation and left after saying goodbye. Since the car they arrived in belonged to Katie, Ali and Steve decided that they would walk the two miles to Vikki's home. As they walked hand in hand, Ali realized this was the last time she would be with him for a while. She didn't want her husband to go, but at the same time she was proud of the work he did.

"I love you," she blurted out.

He grinned, "I love you."

Ali sat on Vikki's couch watching T.V while her cousin worked on paperwork. Vikki worked in city hall as a lawyer. It had been a little over an hour since Steve left, which would mean he should already be at the airport in Austin.

The front door flew open and Katie ran inside, screaming, "Turn on the T.V!"

"It's on-"

Ali was interrupted by Katie shoving her off of the couch and sitting down.

"Christ, it's not like I'm carrying a child or anything," Ali remarked as Katie shushed her.

"Katie what's happen-"

"Shhhh!" Katie quieted Vikki. "Nothing! Absolutely nothing!"

"What's going on?! Where the hell is Eric?" Vikki demanded.

"There's a giant mushroom cloud when you look east, from Austin!" Katie shouted.

Ali felt her mouth fall open. She quickly lunged for her phone that was on the coffee table by the couch and dialed Steve's number. There was no ring, just a robotic voice telling her that the number she dialed was not available and to leave a voicemail.

"He's not answering," Ali began to hyperventilate.

"I'm sure it's fine," Vikki assured. "Look the U.S is the safest country, it could have been something else-"

Ali ignored her cousin and bolted upstairs. She yanked the string to bring out the stairs to the attic and ran up those. There was a window that was above the roof of the porch, Ali opened it and stepped out on the roof to see what was happening. She let out a cry when she saw the menacing cloud of fire and smoke that Katie notified her about. She should have made him stay, told him to spend another night with her. He would have done it for her.

"Steven!" she cried, tears beginning to stream down her face.

Why would Austin, Texas be nuked? Why would someone attack a city in Texas? There were so many other important cities like New York. Why Austin? Why today?


	2. Chapter 2

**Fighting for Eden**

**Chapter 2: Cut Off**

**Five-0 Headquarters. Morning after attacks. **

Danny Williams stood in his office while his daughter, Grace was scribbling away in a coloring book. He had not slept the entire night. He had been busy packing Grace's things as well as his own, scared Honolulu would blow up at any minute. Steve, his closest friend, was dead and the phone call he received from the SEAL's wife was chilling…

"_Ali, what happened?" _

"_Danny, Austin was bombed," he could hear Ali's distressed voice through static. "Steve was there, he's dead, Danny. Find my broth-"_

"_Ali? What are you talking about?"_

"_Dan-"_

"_Ali? Ali?" Danny shouted into the phone as Grace looked up at him from the McGarrett's kitchen table. He was house sitting for them. _

_What had Ali said? A bomb went off in Austin, Texas? And… it couldn't be. The man everybody thought would never die, was dead? His best friend was dead? Ali was all alone in a danger zone? Danny turned on the T.V and surfed until he found the news. _

"_Cities attacked include Washington D.C, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Baltimore, Austin, Houston, Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas, Chicago, Philadelphia, Phoenix ,Columbus, Denver, Nashville, Seattle, Kansas City, Miami,Atlanta, Raleigh, Chesapeake, Madison, Providence, and Peoria," the reported listed off as Danny's eyes widened, Rachel and Stan had been in Las Vegas. _

_Who the hell was attacking these cities? How the hell did a city like Peoria get attacked? Nobody in the U.S knew where the hell that was, how did whoever was attacking them know? He didn't want to leave Grace, but at the same time he had to find Chin and Kono. _

"_It is unclear what other cities, if any more at all, will be bombed," the reporter informed as Danny grabbed Grace's hand. He was not going to wait to see if Honolulu was a target on the list. _

"_We have to go, we have to get out of here," he told his daughter, forming a plan in his head. "You have clothes?" _

"_Daddy what's going on?" she asked. "I'm scared. _

"_Gracie, I need you to just listen to everything I say, okay?" Danny asked, wanting to avoid telling her that Rachel could possibly be dead. _

_Grace nodded her head and looked up at Danny with her big brown eyes. _

"_Go get your things from Mary's room," he urged his daughter, suddenly remembering Steve's little sister. _

_Didn't she live in Los Angeles? Did she make it? It was not possible that the only McGarrett's left would be Ali and the unborn baby. Danny had to find out if Mary was alive somehow, for his best friend. He had to find Josef and Max Sarna for Ali, although he was pretty sure Max would know something about the attacks…_

"Danny," Kono called out to him from his doorway, where Chin stood beside her.

"Grace, stay right here. If I call you, you come immediately," Danny told his daughter as he left his office and followed his friends to the large computer.

"We have to get out of Hawaii," Danny ordered. "And that is not coming from the part of me that hates this giant rock; we cannot wait around and see if we're going to be incinerated."

"Danny, we grew up here and we have family here," Chin stated. "It's too dangerous on the mainland for us to leave Hawaii. We can't fly, it's too much of a risk."

"I know, I know, but I have a plan and _you_ guys didn't hear Ali last night," Danny said in a matter of fact-ly tone, dreading that he was going to have to explain Steve's death. "She calls and it's obvious she's crying. Let's remember that this is a woman who was a spy, was orphaned, was cheated on by a high school boyfriend, thought her brother was dead, and went in to Korea with us to save her husband. Not once has she broken down, not once has she felt sorry for herself, but when she called last night it was obvious she had a nervous breakdown because Steve was in Austin when the bomb went off there."

The blonde detective saw Kono and Chin's faces drop in disbelief. It hurt them as much as it hurt Danny. A person who they loved like a brother died, the man who led Five-0 was gone and now it was up to Danny to lead the task force, even if it meant leading them to the mainland.

"Now Ali is alone and pregnant. If things are bad now on the mainland, how will they be in the next eight months when that kid gets here? How will Ali raise that baby by herself?" Danny continued on. "We have to find a boat to sail to California."

"I can call Adam," Kono informed solemnly. "I know he has a boat with enough gas to get us to California and it's just at the port near Waikiki."

"If Hawaii is being targeted-"

"Evacuate your families to Samoa, Japan, wherever that's far enough away from Hawaii to avoid the blast, but close enough to get away in time," Danny instructed. "Kono call Adam now, we need to hurry. I told the Sarna brothers to meet us at the port you're talking about. I figured since it's the closest one to where we all live."

Kono nodded as Danny pulled out his own phone out. He had to call the Sarna brothers to make sure they were ready to leave. He dialed Max's phone number and waited while he listened to the ringing tone.

"Max," he heard Max Sarna greet.

"We're securing a boat. Are you ready?"

"Do I sound ready?"

Danny felt annoyance rise in him, "Do you _sound_ ready? I don't know. Would it be hard to just say yes or no? Is everything –"

"Yes we're ready," Max interrupted Danny. "Listen as soon as we're on the mainland, I have to leave you guys."

Danny never understood what it was with Max. He always kept things hush-hush, including from the people he loved.

"Look, I don't care what's going on in your personal life, I mean line of work," Danny purposely said to point out that it seemed as if Max cared too much for his job. "But I'm sure Little Max is terrified and how do you think your sister feels right now?"

"Little Max is with his _parents_ and Ali is with my cousins. She might feel alone because someone she loves died, but she's Ali." Max countered, insensitively. "She's not a little girl."

Danny couldn't believe this guy. He didn't care that the U.S was obliterated, that his sister was widowed and his brother would have no idea on who trust when they were on the road.

"You listen to me," Max continued before Danny could say anything. "There is something important that has to be done to save the country. I have to do it, Danny, or else the US will be crippled, taken advantage of-"

"Do you know who attacked us?" Danny asked. "I just want the truth."

"My family and I'll meet you guys where we agreed upon," Max hung up, ending the conversation.

Danny threw his hands up in defeat and felt like throwing his phone across the room. He was furious that Max was making all these decisions and there was no time in stopping him.

***H5-0***

**Eden, Texas. **

**Day 3 after attack**

Ali sat quietly in a rocking chair on Vikki's porch. She fumbled around with a silver necklace that had a cross on it. She had always considered herself a woman of God , but this situation was really tugging on her faith. She understood that belief and trust in the Lord would lead her to safety, but what had she done for this to happen to her? The power had gone out almost immediately after the bomb went off, but she had a chance to call Danny Williams, Steve's best friend. Apparently Hawaii hadn't been targeted. She wondered if Hawaii still had power.

The screen door screeched open and Eric walked out onto the porch holding a duffel bag. He had a solemn expression on his face. Ali arched a brow as she looked up at him.

He cleared his throat, "Katie broke off our relationship. I have to move in with my dad."

Ali was utterly perplexed, "Why would she do that?"

"She says she wanted to end things for a while and that I should leave," Eric admitted as Ali stood up. "She has another man."

"Is it okay if I go into town with you?" she asked, hoping company would take both of their minds off of their misfortunes.

"Yeah, my dad would want to see you anyway," he agreed, but she could tell he was distracted by Katie's abrupt decision to breakup.

The two strolled in silence through the streets of Eden as the sun was setting. The town was so beautiful; every house looked as if it had been taken out of a storybook. There were brick houses with old fashioned windows and Victorian houses in different sizes. The grass on each lawn was still green and each house had a different assortment of flowers in front. There were a few children running around after one another as if nothing had happened to the United States. Ali could remember being the little girl with pigtails, throwing a tantrum over wanting to wear a dress and wanting to be with her older brothers as they wrecked havoc on the town. Her relatives couldn't stop Ali from running out of the yellow Victorian home and playing with Marisa or Eric. Would life still be like that in the next few weeks? Would the nuclear bombs affect the standard of living for her daughter or son?

"Takes you back, doesn't it?" Eric asked.

Ali nodded, "I remember your scrawny little butt falling off of your bike on this street."

Eric let out a short laugh, "Little Eric Samson, trying to impress Little Ali Sarna."

She rolled her eyes, "I don't remember that part."

"We were kids," Eric laughed. "Of course you don't."

They continued to walk down the street until they reached Main Street. The street was filled with disarray. People were standing in front of the town hall, listening to Eric's father, Wyatt, who was the mayor of Eden. Everybody looked scared and unhappy.

"What're you going to do about food!" someone shouted from the crowd.

"People, we need to take an inventory of what we have-"

"Let's go to the diner," Eric urged her, grasping her arm and pulling her towards a small, modern diner on the corner.

"Wait, what about your stuf-"

"I'll drop it off later," Eric assured her as they entered the diner. The diner looked more like a bar on the inside with a few tables, a row of booths along the back wall and a counter where food (and, most likely, alcoholic beverages) was served.

"I'll just sit here," Ali informed, sitting down at one of the counter stools as Eric continued walking towards an older woman whom Ali recognized as his mother, Julie.

"Hey," Anne greeted her.

"Anne, you work here?" Ali asked, surprised.

"Yeah, ever since my first was born. It's a miracle that we had a generator," Anne changed the subject as Ali turned her head back to the window so that she could see what was happening in the streets.

People were listening to whatever Wyatt was telling them and Ali marveled at his geniality. The door to the eatery opened and Vikki's new neighbor, Michael Donovan, came in. He was a tall man with short, brown hair, tanned skin and green eyes. He was wearing a black shirt along with black cargo pants and boots, reminding Ali of something spies wore for black operations.

She laughed when she pieced what she knew together. This neighbor moved here by himself, owned a vicious dog that was kept on the porch all hours of the day, showed up at the diner wearing black ops' attire and, according to Vikki, 'talked funny'. The man had some sort of involvement in the spy world and Ali was sure of it.

"I'll be right back," she told Anne.

She stood from her stool and made her way towards Michael. She wanted to slap herself when she tripped over her own feet and Michael had to catch her.

"You alright?" he asked.

"Yeah, thanks," Ali answered, feeling thankful that he had caught her. "You definitely don't look like you belong in Eden."

"You don't either," he responded with a smirk on his face.

Ali didn't let this discourage her from prying information from him, "Are you kidding? I'm blonde and I go to Church every Sunday, if that's not a stereotypical Eden citizen I don't know what is."

"I just moved here from Jericho, Kansas," he informed as Ali tried to see where his eyes wandered. If they wandered to the left, he was using the creative part of his brain to make up a lie, but he just stared right at her.

"So you live here long?" he questioned.

"Long enough for Betty at the grocery store to still give me a lollipop every time I go in there," she answered, feeling awful for bringing Betty into her spy game.

"Must be nice to have a nice, stable hometown," he remarked as Ali internally cheered at her chance to subtly confirm that he was a spy.

"Oh come on!" she jested. "It isn't like you had to live in Korea, China or the Middle East!"

He gave her a sly smile and hesitated before saying, "No. Not at all."

That was all she needed in order to know that Michael Donovan had been employed by the U.S Government. She grinned back at him, made a little more small talk before returning to her stool where Eric was waiting for her. Anne had left to help the cooks in the back with orders and there was slow music playing on the speakers.

"How's the new guy_?" _he asked.

"Not sure," she replied while Eric stood and took her hand. "What're you doing?"

"Come on, the sun's down, it's not crowded, we should dance," Eric urged her.

"Eric, a nuclear bomb went off," Ali brought up.

"And we might never get to have another evening like this," he pointed out as Ali followed his lead.

He put one hand on her waist while she laid her head down on his shoulder and assured herself it meant nothing. They were both just two scared individuals looking for a friend to keep them safe.

"I'm sorry my cousin's kind of a skank," Ali said, lifting her head from his shoulder.

"The thing is," he looked at her. "I knew all along, but I didn't care. I pretended I didn't know and waited for her to tell me."

"Eric-"

"I didn't care, Ali," he repeated with a twinkle in his eye.

She laid her head back down, unsure of what Eric was _really_ trying to tell her.

As the pair danced, Ali thought of Steve; she cared that she didn't have him anymore. She cared that the man who saved her countless times, worked so hard to provide for her and strived to make her happy was gone. She didn't even have a chance to say goodbye. Of course she had said "bye" when he left for Austin, but she thought he would have been home in the next three weeks. She didn't have a chance to truly say goodbye.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3: Robbie and Katie**

**Day 3 **

"So before I ask this question I want to know I won't be killed," Steve's new acquaintance, Roberto "Robbie" Herrera , said with a Hispanic accent.

Steve glanced at Robbie. He was of a medium stature with dark, curly hair. He wasn't particularly fit, but he wasn't out of shape either and he sported a mustache similar to Jack Sparrow's. The two men had been on a bus headed towards Austin when the bus broke down. Steve attempted to help the driver fix the engine, but then the group witnessed a mushroom cloud over Austin and fights began to break out among the passengers. He used necessary force to break people up and Robbie had assisted him.

When the bus driver told the two men that he could handle the situation himself, the Navy SEAL and his new companion decided to walk to a gas station a few miles ahead of them to find help. Steve wanted to find out what was happening in Austin. He had his suspicions on the attackers, but he couldn't be sure.

"I don't kill people, Robbie," Steve assured.

"That's comforting," Robbie smirked. "Who are you?"

"What're you talking about?"

"Like what do you do? Cause' obviously you're no farmer from Eden, or any farm for that matter," Robbie pointed out.

"I used to be a Navy SEAL," Steve explained.

"Bullshit!" Robbie exclaimed from surprise. "No way!"

Steve shrugged his shoulders. He loved his old job, despite how dangerous it had been. It hadn't been glamorous as the movies portrayed it to be, it was something he did for his country. It was something he did to protect the citizens of the U.S.

"Not that unbelievable," he remarked to Robbie when he felt the need to drink something. "How much further is this gas station?"

"It's a couple miles ahead," he replied.

Steve began to wonder how close the station was to Austin. If it was too close to the blast, then they risked being exposed to radioactivity.

"How far from Austin?"

"I don't know, we were halfway there when the bus broke," Robbie answered. "I don't go to Austin very often, I was leaving Eden because I had to meet a detective on behalf of the sheriff. You gotta' do that when you're second in command. I just wanted to avoid having to go to a stupid high school reunion."

He deduced that Robbie must have gone to school with Ali. Steve could tell that his classmates ostracized him. Robbie just told the commander that he was involved in law enforcement. It was a rightfully earned position through Robbie's determination to prove his classmates wrong, to prove that he was capable of doing more than they were. Right now, however, what mattered was figuring out how to avoid being exposed to radiation.

"This is important, Robbie. Focus," Steve instructed him. "If we get too close to the blast radius, our kidneys, our lungs, our stomachs will be radiated. You don't want that do you?"

"I guess not," Robbie answered, running a hand through his dark hair. "It wouldn't seem so far away if it weren't so hot. The stations gotta' be two miles ahead. We were twenty five miles from both Eden and Austin, the halfway mark. I know that the station is five miles from the mark and we've walked three so far, I counted our steps."

"Alright, so we'll be twenty miles from the blast sight," Steve thought out loud, secretly impressed by the deputy.

It would be dangerous to be that close to Austin. If the mushroom cloud had been visible twenty five miles away, then the bomb had been big. As a military man, though, he had to refuse to let anybody from that bus to go on the road. They didn't have enough training to risk their lives. Besides, according to him and every other SEAL, the only easy day was yesterday.

"What were you doing in Eden anyway?" Robbie pulled him out of his thoughts.

"I was at the high school reunion you skipped out on," Steve answered.

"So you came con un mujer," Robbie smiled. "With a woman native to my town."

"That's right," Steve replied, wishing he had some way to call Ali and tell her he was safe.

"What's she like? Your wife?" Robbie stated, pointing at Steve's left hand, where his silver wedding band sat upon his ring finger.

As Steve thought o f Ali, he had to acknowledge that she was this tough woman whose mind raced with a million and one thoughts in a matter of seconds, which had been helpful at Five-0 when the team hit a dead end on a case and needed imagination to direct them in a new way. However, it had been terrible when her own life hit a rough patch. Steve could remember when the smallest thing, such as a negative remark from somebody, would upset her. Now, though, she took things slowly, focused on one thing at a time and told Steve the littlest things. It was amazing how much she had grown. She was going to be an amazing mother and while Steve knew nothing about being a father, he was excited to share this part of his life with her. Even if he didn't let anybody know, he was happy and would not abandon his family.

"She's pregnant," Steve admitted, feeling sweat pool on the back of his neck. "And happy."

"Well we better get you back to her," Robbie nodded his head.

**H5-0**

Ali walked up the stairs to the house that evening and leaned against the wooden banister. There was a feeling of uneasiness in her chest. She felt as if there was an evil demon, hunching over her shoulder, waiting to pounce on her at any moment. She knew it was because she had been widowed and she was afraid that she would never be happy again. How would she be a good mother if she was never happy?

The screen door screeched open and Katie sauntered from the house, holding her cell phone. She had a look of devastation on her face while she waved the phone in the air. To Ali, it seemed as if her cousin didn't understand that the power went out.

"We were just nuked," Ali remarked.

"So, I need to call somebody!" her cousin impatiently told her.

Ali saw this as a chance to find out more about the man who Katie was cheating with. She bit her lip, wanting to tread lightly on the matter, but she knew she would have to speak to her before the rest of Eden found out.

"Is it the man that you're cheating with?"

"Excuse me?" Katie snapped, lowering her phone and looking at Ali.

"You heard me, Katie," Ali said.

"That isn't any of your business," Katie countered.

Ali loved her cousin, she truly did. However Katie continuously proved to be concerned with her wants more than those of the people around her. Maybe that was what would help her survive in the new world. Ali, however, did believe that a person would make it if they didn't stretch out a helping hand to someone else.

"Katie, Eric was a good guy- he _is_ a good guy," Ali began. "He didn't deserve that."

"He was boring!"

"He _cared _for you!" Ali nearly shouted. "He was your first boyfriend, your first kiss, your first dance and he actually cared for you. My first boyfriend cheated on me!"

"That's what this is about!"

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"You don't want me to be like Seth? Well news flash, I'm not here to please you!"

"I don't care who you're like, I just want you think of others before yourself!"

"I never felt like I was right for this family because I wasn't a good person-"

"Would you stop that? You're not a bad person, you just need some-"

"It's a new world, Ali, and maybe there isn't room for things that I don't care about! Maybe I'm just the type of person that'll survive," Katie angrily declared as Ali felt nausea rise from her stomach.

She wasn't sure if Katie literally made her sick, or if it was just the baby. Either way, she had to find a bathroom before she puked all over the stairs.

"I'm going to be sick," she remarked, heading towards the door, pausing just before she walked inside. "Just remember, Katie, I'll always be here with open hands whether you care or not. No Man is an island."


End file.
